Abstract – The mangrove tree-dwelling crab has not received much attention beyond its description. Most people have never heard of it, even those who live with it on their shores. S. brockii lives on trees in the sandbank areas of the Singapore mangroves, feeding off algae at night and hiding during the day.

The current study has examined the contest behaviour of Selatium on the vertical axis, contrary to common competition experiments performed on flat ground. The preliminary results are presented along with ideas for future research projects and the need for conservation efforts at Mandai mangroves.

Marcus’ talk at Singapore Botanic Gardens went off well. He was well drilled after an earlier presentation in Pulau Ubin on Wednesday with NParks staff. Since he gets better with each performance, encore performances have been suggested for NUS and at Wildlife Reserves Singapore!

But this one will remain especially sweet – mum was in the front row and many of his survey kakis from the Vertebrate Study Group and NParks were there.

Early birds

Back Row

The rest of last year’s Ecolab students under my supervision, Theresa and Trina, delivered their mudskipper talks at Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve in May. This resumes a tradition that began in 2004 with Fiona Hong and Teo Yen Ling.

“Contrasting the advantages of long and short distance seed dispersal for tree populations at the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary.”

By Trevor CaughlinDoctoral candidate, University of Florida.

Date: Tue 28 July 2009: 2pm
Venue: SR2 (S2 Level 4-10)

Host: Ahimsa Campos-Arceiz,
Terrestrial Ecology Lab

Abstract – The Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary in western Thailand is notable for having intact animal populations and a dynamic mosaic of forest types from evergreen to dry deciduous dipterocarp.

My research examines how ingestion by large wide-ranging animals, such as civets, affects tree populations in this landscape. Experiments quantifying seed fate show that the advantage of frugivory for three trees in the family Annonaceae is likely to be related to seed movement, rather than gut passage or deposition in dung. However, the benefits of movement for seed fate and ultimately tree populations are likely to be different at different distances from conspecific tree populations.

About the speaker – Born and grown in the United States, Trevor Caughlin’s fascination with tropical fruits began in 6th grade, when he conducted his first germination experiments with the seeds of mango and papaya. Since then, Trevor has been involved in various projects that have taken him to study tropical ecology around the world.

At present Trevor is studying how seed dispersal structures tree populations in the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary, central Thailand. This study is part of his PhD program at the University of Florida under the supervision of Professor Doug Levey, an eminent figure in tropical ecology and plant-animal interactions. He is also involved in research on the ecology of figs and seed-dispersing animals in South Florida.

Ben Godsall, the famous mangrove whipray victim, has a habit of appearing miserable on videos. Here he is, sitting on a plastic sofa in the middle of London Zoo. He looks distressed for about 4 minutes then goes on and on about Asian fauna of polluting the Thames!

The real story was the absence of a crowd except for a few maintenance men who were staring and laughing as they soldiered on for conservation. Well done lads.

Ben Godsall, our visiting student at Ecolab, recently suffered a traumatic injury that had him flee the mangrove in great haste, accompanied by some very shocked field researchers.

Much of this was caught on video and was circulated widely in the natural history community to great consternation.

Brits too are a sympathetic lot and Ben’s friends back home expressed great sympathy for his plight. Although anonymous, Ben says he knows who these three are and promises to respond in kind at the earliest opportunity.